Pretentious? Moi? Absolutely, says Salvatore

Sting, pictured playing the lute while his wife does yoga, also made the list. Photo: Buzzfeed, via Facebook

Hilary McNevin

It’s not often that Salvatore Malatesta, owner of Melbourne cafes St Ali and St Ali North, and chef/restaurateur Pete Evans are grouped with the likes of rock star Sting and rapper Kanye West - but this is exactly what has happened on the British website BuzzFeed.

Earlier this month the site posted a list titled ‘‘The 24 Most Pretentious Things Ever’’ and Malatesta and Evans had the dubious honour of coming in at number 1 and 7 respectively.

A photo of Malatesta brewing siphon coffee at his CBD cafe Sensory Lab earned the No. 1 spot, with BuzzFeed claiming that ‘‘this method of preparing coffee’’ was the most pretentious thing ever, adding, that the ‘‘coffee costs £8 ($13)’’.

Malatesta claimed he was chuffed with the inclusion: ‘‘I am flattered; if the people who wrote the list met me, they would see I have a healthy level of pretension.

"I'm more pretentious than Sting. That's pretty cool!"

For Evans, receiving another dig for his diet does not bother him, but does he regret ever putting it out there?

"I don’t regret being honest about what I cook and eat at home,’’ he says. ‘‘The amount of positive feedback and success stories that I have received from people who eat this way and have overcome health issues for themselves and their family is overwhelming.’’

Is any publicity (pretentious or otherwise) good publicity? Add your comments below.

Well, Sting has talent...the other guy is a waiter.Fortunately Melbourne is like mecca for pretentious bogans so...let's look forward to a nice coffee and a Sting tour?

Commenter

Jimmy

Location

Date and time

July 17, 2013, 5:47PM

He's got hipsters buying a $13 coffee. Bravo I say! Good on you Mr Malatesta....No. 1 placing on a pretension list will guarantee 'ironic' hipsters knocking down your doors to buy your coffee and post themselves drinking it on Instagram..... If people have more money than sense and have a huge dose of FOMO....then they deserve to be taken for the longest, most expensive, ride of their lives. Of course he's chuffed.